Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-05-28
vOTARESSES OF THE MONEY GOD.
The ViciOus Craving for Change and
Variety i'm Dress.
THk HISTORY OF A BLACK SILK DRESS-RECEET Dis
fENsATIoSs IN WHITE DREssBs-rHB EsfHKrc
SLRBvE-CLEvER GIRLS AND CHARMING COSTUMES.

THE HISTORY OF A BLACK SILK DREss-REcEHr Dis
PENsATIoSs IN WHITE DREssEs-rHE EsfHKrIc
| sLkEvE-CLEvER GIRLS AND CHARMING COSTUMES
From Our Own Correspondent.
NEW YORK, May 81.
| Rhoda Broughton tells In one OF her novels OF
curates wife whose white silk wedding dress first
| uyeo Drown and then black, was her best dinner
party dress for fifteen years. Doubtless the wear
| ing OF one gown must have grown monotonous.
But aiter all it had its cOmpenSating side. There
was no anxiety with regard to style, and no doubt
as to choice. The one dress had mission to ful-
| NIL and fulilledtt
There are few women now but have some such
dress; and 1t Is nearly always black one. AS
the curate's wife said: "a black silk dress is al
ways smart enough and not too smart;" and black
SILK, covered with lace, trimmed with jet or CON-
Dlned with velvet, has become the piecederesist-
| dnce OF almost all wardrobes But it is rarely,
with US. the one dress: 1t is the one in twenty.
The tendency OF dreSSeS-Of everything In these
days-is to senseless multiplication Materials
are bought because they are pretty, Hike photo
n I c III fancy d as
bur1ened with inanimate objects that every bit Of
free air and vital influence is excluded from them
This growing and eternally fed DESIRE this tend
ency toward accumulation, demands constantly
increasing expenditure and feeds the raging thirst
Money is the god that all worship The names OF
two or three great money kings have become q
with who
false-wiu be eagerly swallowed by the public.
Women, conscientious women, need to hold a
strong check upon themselves, that they may not
be led away by the vulgar popular current. Above
all, il IS time for them TO consider their clothing
from some other point of view than that of sfash,
ion" Perhaps there is no other one term in the world
that is more misleading or uncertain to-day than
| this same one Of fashion" Fashion Is the new
thing, the happy thought, the revival of an old
idea, or the application of an existing object to
fresh uses. But there is never more than one OF It
when it is turned out in dozens It ceases to be
| fashion.
WHITE TOILETS.
The embroidered, white, cotton dresses are
| case in point. When they were rare and costly
| ladies wore them and they were considered and
described as sIOvely" Now they are turned out
by the hundreds, sold as low as $3.50 each-fOr an
entire rObeand discovered to be crude, inartiS-
tic and chalky, that no lady OF taste will wear one
we have discovered that true "white" dress Is
| not dead white-l1ke a wall space-but collection
OF soft tintS which produce white cloud or water
effects; and that this tint upon tint, deepening
into shades of brown or green or grey, requires
even finer artistic sense for their proper group
ing and arrangement than the suitable contrast
ing OF cOlOrS.
4 "white" dress made recently began with a
cloud OF greyish tulle laid over soft, pale grey
silk over this first. layer of tulle was draped
lighter shade, and above this, pearly white
frOsted-and held in place by three sash ends Of
irregular lengths in the three shades OF the tulle
These were gathered upon the ends and fastened
down with rOSettes OF narrow ribbon, each rOSette
containing the shades of the tulle. The bodice was
with small pearl beads. The sleeves were almost
nil. This design is charming with pale yellow as
the foundation, or In combination OF brown and
and cream.
Cream wool and cream surah enter almost
equally into the composition OF summer costumes
but not In combination with each other. White
wool dresses have taken the place of white cotton
and are really more economical for those who have
to pay hotel laundress; for white washing
1t has been washed and starched and irOned few
times, while creepy wool-albatross cloth or nuns
veiing-will last one or two seasons with care,
and can then be sent to cleaner or made over for
a child.
Embroidery in colors and delicate striped pat
tern upon the material forms the newest and pref
test Ornamentation upon these pale xOOls; and
the suggestive contraSt-nOt at all bold or cOnSpc-
uOuS-iS needed, to give them character. ROSettes
or groups OF loops, In narrow ribbon the colOrs Of
the embroidery, are often used upon one shoulder,
or the draped side OF the bodice, or TO point the
1t is upon the thin woods that embroidery IS
mostly expended. The heavier materials, such as
dress fannels, Vienna cloths chuddah cloths alba
trosS and canvas cloths, require more striking
finish. Some OF these are trimmed with a velvet
stripe; others are richly braided with gold, and
stu Others contrasts with peacock blue or poppy
A recent cream wool suit, made for Newport,
had plated edging Of cream surah, a plated
vest OF the same. buttoned with small gold but
tons, and a pOppy-red velvet jacket, cut straight
and open, with sleeves nearly to the wrist, and
sailor straw hat trimmed with red velvet and
creamy tufts OF feathers
THE ESTHRrIC SLEEVE.
Cream surah and gold Surah, for which the de-
mand has been such as to threaten extinction
from the market, are used mainly for narrow
plaitings and the immense puffings, which have
demic. ''The mills OF the gods grind SLOWLY but
If the English eSthetes and their American ad-
tumely heaped upon their slashed sleeves, their
leg of mutton sleeves, their Greek sleeves their
full medieval sleeves, and their fourteenth-cen-
has swallowed them, New York and all America
that takes its cue from France, must, whether 1t
will or no; and, indeed, it seems to have done so
without making a wry face. The difference with
us is, that while in London and Paris such con-
Sp1cuOuS styles are limited to small number,
and to social occasions, here they become uni
verSal, and, like the "MOther Hubbard" wrapper
are put upon the street.
sense OF fitness; but 1T may be only that larger
number here have the power OF gratifying their In
clinations than elsewhere, and only the street in
Which to display their f1nery.
CHECKS AND STRIPES,
both large and small are in the ascendant. At
a recent club gathering handsome costume Of
black and white silk check had a paneled side
vest cuffs and high collar OF exquisite black and
white embroidery. The bonnet was black lace,
| with ornaments Of black and white small feathery
flowers.
Another dress was all gray, except the collar,
cuffs and plastron, which were OF rich India bro.
cade. Striped veyets and bits OF rich brOcade are
now much used as mounting upon plain olive or
brown wool instead OF solid velvet, as last year.
Stylish travelling dresses are OF check in neutral
cOlOrs, shades OF brown or dark gray, with skirt
straight at the back. short drapery and habit
bodice. travelling ulster Is fitted at the back
has hood and is lOOped up on one side or may be
| lowered, as preferred. The ulster may be OF
checked silk, thin summer wool or linen, but the
the hood should be lined with soft silk in solid
color.
Checked linens in butcher blue shades of gray
| brown or fawn, are now finished so smoothly that
they look like fOularu and make useful and cool as
Wen as Inexpensive summer dresses and long dust
| cloakS. They are best made up too without trim
| ming, excepting tucking and stitching, but when
SOiied, they should not be washed they should be
sent TO the cleaner, and Will then come out as
good as new and ready for second season.
Clustered lines, white upon blue, upon lilac upon
gray and upon ecru, are combined with the solid
color, in ginghams and other washing fabrics, and
are well suited for tennis and the morning wear of
girls The striped cotton Is used for the front of
the skirt or for sides and turnover apron drapery
IL also forms the sailor front {pOinted) and collar
| OF the Garibaldi bodice and the cuffs upon the
| sleeves.
| CLEVER GIRLS
| who are their own dreSSmakerS are making cheap
and charming dresses Of blue butcher linen,
trimmed with bands of white and blue embroidery
upon the material These are made with full
bodice and sleeves, the bands crossing diagOnally
| TO the side and forming panel upon the lower
half OF the left OF the skirt. Striped blue and
white linen also looks well as mounting for
| butcher linen.
Oatmeal cloth is an effective and cheap material
| for the summer dresses OF girls who make their
| own, but is hardly worth a dressmakers bill
4 1Ntax lost firs q L.